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Robby Anderson made his presence in the NFL known in 2017

Robby Anderson was a revelation for the New York Jets in 2017. New York was pegged to be the worst team in the leagues entering last season. Some even believed that they would end up 0-16. When Quincy Enunwa went down before the season started, many feared that the Jets had lost the only play maker on their roster. Enter Robby Anderson.

Anderson went undrafted out of Temple in 2016. He earned a roster spot after an impressive training camp for the Jets, and played in all 16 games his rookie year. He was surprisingly productive in his first season, topping 500 yards and 40 receptions.

He was still overlooked for the most part entering 2017, and was not on the national radar at all. Enunwa going down would end up opening the door for him, though. Anderson caught 63 passes on 114 targets for 941 yards, all career highs. He had 17 receptions that went for over 20 yards last season, and three catches for over 40 yards. Six of his seven touchdowns came from more than 20 yards out as well.

Anderson is an incredible deep threat. He is most efficient on vertical routes, and as expected his incredible speed is his greatest asset.

Every time he is on the field Anderson brings the threat that he can scorch a defense for a huge gain. He has attracted the attention of some of the best CB’s in the league and even been able to leave them in his dust.

On this play Anderson is lined up against AJ Bouye, arguably the best cornerback in the NFL. Bouye is known for is incredible technique and footwork, but still gets caught flat footed by Anderson here. Anderson comes off of the snap and takes his first step inside. He stabs in after a few yards, then gets his hips low and quickly changes direction to break his route downfield. Bouye is quick to recover after falling behind for a moment but is still way behind is man. The ball is slightly underthrown, which allows the corner back into the play and keeps the receiver out of the end zone.

Even when given a cushion defensive backs have trouble keeping up with Anderson when he takes off with his blazing speed.

The Dolphins give Anderson a 7 yard cushion on this play and drop into cover 3 zone. Anderson takes off on a hitch route off of the snap, and before the safety or the corner can even react he manages to split their zones and find himself wide open for a touchdown. This play was way to easy for the Jets but plays like these can happen when a defense falls asleep for a split second against a player with this kind of speed.

While a majority of his highlight plays are on deeper routes downfield, the Jets use Anderson in a variety of ways. One of the best ways to attack a team that is playing off coverage on your deep receiver is to run deep curls and comeback routes. These types of routes keep the opposing corner on their heels, as if they leave to much space for the receiver upfield then the other team can get a quick 10 yard gain. If you don’t leave a cushion, though, you are liable to getting torched downfield for even more.

New York took advantage of that concept on this play.

Anderson is split wide to the right on this play against the Cleveland Browns. It looks at first as though Anderson was just running a go route to keep the CB across from him out of the play. An extended play breaks out though, as Josh McCown is forced out of the pocket. The defensive back still left the cushion on Anderson intact, so he wouldn’t get lost in the commotion and beat them deep. The receiver instead runs a comeback and makes an easy wide-open catch with no one anywhere near him.

While majority of deep threats in the NFL mainly focus on longer routes, and the occasional comeback or curl to throw the defense off (notably Kenny Stills) the Jets used Anderson in a variety of ways in 2017.

Even when not running downfield Anderson’s ability as a route runner combined with the always existing threat of him beating teams deep allows him to throw defenses off of his trail with ease. On this play against the Falcons he slips through man coverage to get wide open.

Anderson is lined up in the slot here. The corner covering him has given him nearly 10 yards of cushion pre-snap. The receiver runs a slant route, while the other receivers run routes that divert the attention of the other defenders away from where Anderson will go. This leaves the corner on Anderson a lot of ground to cover in little time with absolutely no help. The receiver makes a simple catch in the flat and bursts up field into open space for a huge gain on the play. Plays like these are impossible if Anderson isn’t a threat for a deep touchdown on every play and will draw the defense in closer on subsequent plays opening more opportunities to beat them deep.

The Jets receiver thrives against one on one man coverage just as he does against zone. On this play against the Patriots, he embarrasses his opponent for a big gain.

Anderson is split wide to the right here. He takes off after the snap and angles his run inside. This pulls the corner, who gave him a huge cushion in man coverage, inside with him. He gets low and dips his hips inside, before flipping his body and breaking on his route outside. The defender gets lost on the play, and does a full spin to reorient himself and find Anderson again. It is too late, though, and the receiver gets wide open for a simple catch near the sideline for a big gain.

The Jets should be a better team in 2018. Enunwa should be back, they are one of the final teams in the race for Kirk Cousins and they have a top ten pick in the draft. There still are many holes on the roster, and they did slightly overperform in 2017, though.

Anderson should be a part of their long-term rebuild, and as the remainder of the AFC East begin to put together teams that will hopefully become contenders once the Tom Brady era comes to an end. The receiver does have some off the field issues, though. A bad run in with the police at the beginning of the offseason was the beginning of what has turned into a tumultuous offseason for him. It would be unwise for the Jets to release him, as the offenses were minor, but much of the fanbase and maybe even some in the front office have turned their back on the receiver.

Despite all of his talent, Anderson may not be a Jet in 2018. It would be a huge loss for New York, though, and if he can clean up his act Anderson has the potential to be a scary weapon for any team.